Where've I been?

August is prime birthday season in Bobby's family - his mom, niece, himself, etc. My sister, Beck, is also in August.

With extremely low funds, I've been eating whatever gets thrown my way for the last month, so I've lost only 3 lbs over the last month, instead of my planned 3 lbs per week. Ahhh!

I've been reading a lot in preparation of the 6 weeks of triathlon training Bobby and I are starting TODAY!

I came up with an alternative to the Subway plan that costs much less. It still has the same grams of protein and calories at each meal, while continuing to avoid sugars. I'll start testing it this week. I'm also adding a recovery drink after workouts - 1c chocolate milk per hour of exercise. (I'll be using Nesquik to avoid High Fructose Corn Syrup.)

Bobby and I've gotten a bit depressed an frustrated lately because of our lack of funds. We get along fine without money, but it's hard to feel like we're always behind. We don't usually spend much extra money on entertainment, etc., but lately we've had a rough time even coming up with gas money to get us to the lake.

We've been getting over this depression by watching "Lost" and "The Closer." And we've been either running or walking almost every morning.

And perhaps most exciting, we got bikes! Admittedly, these are not our dream bikes- I still lust after the 2008 Jamis Quest Daily. However, we each got a bike at the Davis Bike Collective. Well, perhaps I'm being hasty. Bobby got an in-tact bike with severely chipped paint. I got a rusty frame and a bag of parts. I couldn't find a frame in my size, so I'm using a mountain bike frame and converting it to be a road bike.

We've both sanded our frames down and begun re-painting them. I'm very excited to be building my bike completely from scratch, but it's an elaborate task. And I need to finish this week, so I can do my first ride this weekend... I'd better get back to it!

I hope you're all out enjoying the sunshine.

Just Because I Don't, Doesn't Mean I Can't

Lately I've been pondering the instances where people assume that others can't do something just because they aren't doing it. Here's a few examples:

When a couple doesn't have children, traditionally they were believed to have a biological reason that they couldn't.

When people don't have sex, others assume they can't- whether they can't find a willing partner or they have some sort of sexual disfunction, etc.

When a person isn't in a romantic relationship (or married) over a long period of time, people assume they are embarrassed by their sexual orientation or unable to find anyone willing to partner with them.

When a person doesn't own a new car, large house, etc. others assume they aren't capable of obtaining such things. Others think either don't they have enough money or couldn't they get a job that earns them enough money to buy all of those things?


I think it's wrong to assume that people want OR SHOULD WANT these things. What makes society think it's okay to judge people this way?

It's okay to NOT want kids or a large house. As much as it's against my nature, I'll even admit that not wanting sex is okay.

I've seen people flabbergasted when they hear that a couple doesn't wank kids. I've seen utter disbelief and confusion when a person says they don't want a large house full of expensive furniture.

There is an increasing number of people making the decision not to have children. The few authors who have voiced this decision have been attacked as being unnatural, un-Christian, and immoral. That disturbs me.

Not only because I feel similarly, but also because society is pressuring against a choice that was just won in recent history. Am I the only one who remembers Women's Lib, the recent acceptance of birth control, and the highly contested right to an abortion. (That's right- I said abortion, instead of 'choice'- I'm a realist.) Women have the right to choose against children, marriage, huge mortgages, etc. So do men.

These choices are all closely tied to environmentalism. These against-the-grain choices all can have huge positive effects on the planet. Having children and building a home are the two biggest ways people negatively affect the environment. Perhaps we should be applauding people who stand up and make these changes.

I'm not arguing that everyone has to make these decisions - I'm arguing for the choice.

Excuses, Excuses

OK, I've been missing-in-action for a while. I was sick, then Bobby was sick, then we went backpacking while he was still sick, then we got sunburns and mosquito bites that made us both feel sick for another week or so. That catches you up to last week. Then I just took a week to get into my old habits, such as contributing to this blog.

I still need to update you on our weight loss: Bobby has been sticking to losing 2-3 lbs/ week, but I've been failing miserably. We've been out of money and eating whatever we can find, which often turns out to be junk food. My losses have been hovering at or below 1 lb/ week. I also haven't been drinking much water.

This past week I've gotten back on track with exercise and water, but we still don't have money for Subway. We took a gift certificate to Target, where I got Cliff Builder Bars and Top Ramen. At least I'll be back to my Subway targets for protein and calories.

I've been jogging a little more each time, every other day, to get ready to start the triathlon training. My last "practice jog" before the real training is on August 15th. I'm hoping we'll start back on the Subway at that time, too. If I don't step it up, I'm not going to make it to 155 lbs by triathlon day, September 27th.

Wish me strength!